We welcome you to Munchkin Land.. #3

So tonight at AWANA, we had some missionaries from Germany talking to the kids...

Missionary: What continent do we live on?

Munchkin: Irvine!

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Showing a picture of their infant son

Missionary: This is our baby.

Munchkin: What's a baby?

Missionary: Uh, who's your mom?... We'll cover that on our next visit.

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Showing a picture of the skyline of Koln, Germany..

Missionary: What's this a picture of?

Munchkin: Seattle!

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Looking at the same picture, the missionary points right off screen to where "more city is"..

Missionary: And right here is where we live!

Munchkin: On the wall?!

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On Sunday, one of the kids was trying to read the memory verse on the white board, and Jenna and I were helping him sound out the words..

Jenna: What does this word say? *pointing to "right"*

Munchkin: R-I-G-H-T.. Trust!

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We welcome you to Munchkin Land.. #2

Before I head to bed.. I have three new adorable quotes to add from the munchkins this evening at AWANA..

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Since it's the Wednesday before Halloween, it was "Pumpkin Pandemonium".. The kiddos all brought pumpkins and we played games with pumpkins on the game square. When the first game was played with pumpkins, two of the kids turned and looked at me and said..

Munchkin: I hope we aren't using pumpkins for dodgeball, too!

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During council time..

Teacher: Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, they are a new... what?

Munchkin: Pumpkin!

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The same munchkin from last week who was telling me how he listens to KISS..

Munchkin: I like the new song from Pitbull called Bon, Bon!

(I looked up the lyrics.. It's a song in Spanish? And the English version is not appropriate..)

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Praying at the end of the night..

Munchkin: Dear Lord, please let us be proud of our pumpkins!

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Untitled

On Saturday, I deactivated my Facebook.

Now, to those of you that have never gone through the process, let's just say that Facebook really, really, REALLY doesn't like the idea of you leaving.

First.. There's no "delete" button. But if you go into Account Settings then choose Security, you'll see something like "Deactivate account".

Once you find the deactivate (notice that it is not delete) and click it, it takes you to a page where they want to know why you're leaving.

Now, the best part isn't that it asks you why (more on that in a second), the part that made me laugh is that at the top of the page, it shows you pictures of 4 of your friends (for me, it happened to be the four people that I interact with the most), with the blurb "So-and-so will miss you.. Send them a message!" under each of them.

Below the pictures of your bffs that will miss you, because they're only you're digital bffs, and you'll never see them in person (please pick up on the sarcastic tone in that statement).. It lists like, ten reasons in the "why are you leaving?" section.

Of course, they don't want you to just say why. When you click one of their reasons, they then try and convince you to stay! When you select the reason, a little pop up appears to defend and help!

- "I don't feel like my information is private enough."

- Did you know that you can control your privacy settings? Click here and we'll show you how!

- "I spend too much time on Facebook."

- Did you know that you can control how often Facebook emails you notifications? This will help you not jump on Facebook every time you get an email about it.

And there were tons more. It cracked me up that they really didn't want you to leave!

And.. Even after all that.. They tell you that "you can log back in at any time and your account will reactivate, and it will be like you never left!".

I've read online that apparently if you don't log in for 14 days, then your account is deleted.. But, that's in contradiction to what Facebook says.. So I don't know what the deal is there.

 

Now.. Why did I decide a detox was necessary? There's a plethora of reasons..

- I am on it all the time. I'm on it on my laptop, my phone, my iPod.. And honestly, I didn't really notice how often I'm on it on my phone until I deactivated my account. It's the default thing I look at on my phone (while I'm walking, while I'm on the phone at work, and, if I'm honest, while I'm driving), so I kept picking up my phone and going to the browser, and realizing "Wait a minute..". It was really weird to realize.

- I don't like being known for being on Facebook all the time. I don't mind people knowing things about me because they read my statuses or see my pictures - that's why I post them anyways, right? But I had someone make the comment that they "always know exactly what's running through my mind" because of it. And I can tell you that that is not true - I am very, very aware of everything I post, and I keep most stuff to myself. But I didn't like that they thought I posted so much that they knew everything.

- I get so frustrated when people post stuff about drinking, or relationship drama, or when they cuss every other word. I don't like that the things that my friends post are changing my view of them, just because they hide behind the keyboard and are totally different than who they are in real life.

- I've LOVED being surprised by things this week. I have no idea what's going on in the lives of people, unless they or I have specifically reached out to them (ah, this is what life was like before!).. Today, I was working in a small room in San Diego all day pretty much by myself.. And it wasn't until I was on my way home that I realized "hah, if there had been an earthquake in Orange County today, I would have absolutely no clue" or "If a celebrity died, I'd be the last to know!". It was a cool feeling.

There's more reasons, but that's three of them.

Anyways. Yes, I'll be back on Facebook. If for no other reason than to keep randomly posting picture from Friends, Community, and Big Bang Theory to introduce the Facebook people to the beauty of Tumblr..

I found the below photo earlier.. I think it's pretty insane..

I'm totally not against Facebook. I just needed to pull back for a few days. Maybe some people have enough self control to just "not log on".. But I know myself, and this was the way to do it! :)

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We welcome you to Munchkin Land..

I teach munchkins at church twice a week now (1st graders on Wednesday and Kindergarten on Sunday).. And they're so adorable.. So I shall share some of their cute/silly/honest moments as they happen. Here's all the things since the beginning though..

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1st grade boy while saying his Bible verses..

Munchkin: Do you listen to KIIS FM?

Me: Sometimes. Do you?

Munchkin: All the time!

Me: Do you have a favorite song?

Munchkin: "If you're sexy and you know it"

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Same kid.. We play games on a "game square" with them, and as the leader, I have to decide who plays when, and when it's a relay, I have to decide who goes 1st, 2nd, 3rd, etc.. And while I was deciding..

Munchkin: If you don't pick me, I'm gonna show you my belly button!

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I was trying to explain how it's impossible to understand how big and awesome God is...

Munchkin: I know what's bigger than the whole world! A baby turtle!

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Jenna was holding up a sea shell and it was supposed to be something "beautiful" to show how we should be like without sin..

Jenna: What does this sea shell look like?

Munchkin: A porcupine's quill!

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Jenna teaches the Kindergarteners with me on Sunday mornings, and on the first week I was explaining that Jenna was my sister..

Munchkin: I have two sisters! They're both girls!

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There's absolutely no context. The munchkins are quite random sometimes. 

Munchkin: I didn't know C**** was a boy!

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On the playground..

Munchkin: I told E****** he was cute, and he said "No, I'm not!"

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One of the kids was reciting Matthew 22:37 ("Jesus replied: 'Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind.'")

Munchkin: Love teh Lord your God with all your heart, with all your sin..

Me: Eh, not quite..

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The Wednesday night group is AWANA, and I help with the "SPARKS". In "SPARKS", each letter stands for something (S is for Saved, P is for Power, A is for According to the Scriptures, R is for Rose Again, K is for Keeps, S is for Savior.. Or something like that).. And when they're saying certain verses, they're supposed to say what the letter stands for.

Munchkin: P is for Rose again.

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A munchkin closing us in prayer for the night..

Munchkin: Dear Jesus, thank You for this day. And please help everyone wear pants.

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Coloring pictures of Adam and Eve..

Munchkin: A**** colored his people blue!

Me: Well, that's okay. God cerated people in all different colors!

Munchkin: Like black people? Or dark brown?

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One of the kids defending my honor after a puppet tried to eat my hair..

Munchkin: I'm gonna put a hole in the back of your head for being mean to my teacher!

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Choosing to trust your cabin..

I was talking to a dear friend last night about some stuff that God's been doing in our lives, and it really got me thinking about how doing something out of habit verses doing something intentionally can be very different things. This can apply to anything.

Out of habit.. Every single morning, my alarm goes off, I hit the 5 minute snooze button, reach over to the side of my bed, turn on my hair straightener, sleep for another four and a half minutes, and spend ten minutes straightening my hair (yes, I am so "gifted" in straightening my hair that I can do it sitting in bed, instead of going into the restroom. No mirrors necessary to turn my bed head into what everyone's used to seeing!).

Intentionally.. Sometimes, I plan to straighten my hair, I intentionally make sure I get every single kink out. I'll even look in a mirror, spot the "bad" spots, and focus on those areas.

I always feel better about my hair on intentional days instead of habitual days.. Even if, to the non-Kelsey eye.. You can't tell the difference.

That was a pretty shallow example..

Out of habit.. I meet up with friends throughout the week to grab coffee or get food. Nothing better to do, so we go do something random.

Intentionally.. Sometimes, we plan a time to get together. Compare schedules and find a block of time that works for each of us. Catch up on life. Talk a million miles a minute. Cram weeks of life into a two hour car ride.

I'm the queen of spontaneity, so I love the improv coffee dates.. But there's something special about knowing that you're going to be seeing someone, knowing that you're both planning a time to hang out. (I have two of these dates planned for next week with two of my favorites and I can't wait!)

And just because three examples are better than two..

Out of habit.. I read my Bible before I go to bed. Some people choose to start their morning with it.. I've always been a night time devo girl.

Intentionally.. I'll wake up early sometimes. Or I'll run to Starbucks during my lunch break and just soak up some extra time reading.

There's nothing wrong with having a schedule with reading your Bible, because for some people, if we don't have a set time (and if we're honest about it) it'll get lost in the busyness of the day.. But I love, love, love the times that I intentionally plan to throw in an extra or different time to spend time in the Word. It's just different. And because I know it's not my "normal" thing, I have a different attitude about it.

I've really been thinking about trusting God. Am I trusting because I'm supposed to and because it's "just what I've always done".. Or am I trusting God because I'm choosing to trust God. There's a pretty big difference when you think about it.

It makes me think of all the times at Camp Ronald McDonald or OCF-OCF that we did the "high ropes" course or the Courage Course. Before you got to tackle the big climbs, you always ran through a bunch of trust exercises with your cabin. 

Standing on a pole three feet above the ground being told "Okay, fall backwards and the eight, 12 year old girls below are going to catch you!".. Climbing to the top of the poll, you think "Psh, this will be easy. It's only three feet if they drop me. Plus, I don't really have to go through with it.". But once you're up there, and you've actually chosen to place your arms across your chest and fall backwards.. That's choosing to trust your cabin. It's a leap (or fall) of faith.

Once you've gotten safely back on the ground.. You're glad you chose to trust them. You wonder why you ever doubted them. You've had an experience that you probably would have never had if you hadn't chosen to trust them. And, if you're anything like me.. You can't wait to do it again!

I get those same exact feelings when I've intentionally chosen to trust God about something.

There's been so many times when I'm going through something, and I decide to trust in me - cuz I know best for me, right? And oh goodness, do I get taught a lesson in humility. I'm thinking of getting a tattoo of "You are stupid. God is not. Don't trust the idiot.".. Or something like that.. Just to ingrain in my head and remind me over and over and over again that I'm just a dumb human who sins and doesn't know what she's doing.. And that He does. And that's all that matters.

The default "trust verse" sums it up quite nicely: Trust in the Lord with all your heart, and do not lean on your own understanding. In all your ways acknowledge Him and He will make your paths straight. - Proverbs 3:5-6

I don't think it really gets much clearer than that.

Must trust God. And trust Him intentionally.

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By default..

I love it when there are one or two lines from a sermon or Bible Study that just won't leave you alone.

Brian asked the questions"What are you an expert in besides the Bible?" and "What would your friends say that you love most?".

When it comes to the first question, I don't think I would actually call myself an expert in ANYTHING. Maybe I'm an expert talker? An expert laugher? I can't exactly put that on a resume. 

But an expert in the Bible? I think that'd be a pretty awesome title to be able to give yourself. Granted, by default, I assume that in order to be an "expert" in the Bible (or anything), you probably have a few diplomas on the wall and a couple of letters after your name proving your expertise. I don't have any extra letters after my name (however, my last name has 12 letters, so I could probably stand to remove some of them and add them afterwards - maybe I'll fool everybody!), so I'm not at any official experience level.. But I like to think I've got a little bit of knowledge under my belt, and I'm always game to learn more. So while I'm not an expert in the Bible, I tend to hunger after learning more in that area of my life than in, say, computers or cooking.. If that makes sense. So my expert-ness (official word, there) is ever growing.. Hopefully exponentially, especially in comparison to other skills and areas of my life.

The second question though.. In complete honesty.. It made me nervous.

What would my friends say? I sat there thinking "Well, I think some of them would say something faith related.. But maybe some of my friends would say that my friends are what I love the most. My job. My random adventures. Disneyland. And it might depend on what my mood was like the last time I was with them. I might have been venting, so that wasn't necessarily very God-love-affirming.. I might have proclaimed my love for Chipotle during dinner.. Oh man, I hope they wouldn't answer with THAT..". 

So to solve that problem, I thought "Okay, make sure to have some sort of a God-related conversation with everyone you come into contact with at least once over the next week, because you want them to know that HE is what you love, just in case they've forgotten".. You know, because that would be pleasing to God - have conversations about Him with an ulterior motive of making yourself look better!

And then I started thinking "What would I say my friends love? Do they all love God? I know these friends would want me to answer the question for them as God, but is it true? Would I be saying that because I know they want me to, or because I really think that's their strongest love? And what about my non-believing friends? What DO they love most? Their boyfriends? Their family? Their car, their job? Clothing?"

My pulse was rushing. My head was reeling. (My face is flushing. What is this feeling? Fervent as a flame... Wicked, anyone? :-P)

Honestly though, my mind was going a million miles a minute trying to figure out what the answer to that question would be.

It was hard. Because even as I was thinking about what my friends would say I love the most.. I started thinking "What would I say I love the most?". I know what the answer should be. What the answer NEEDS to be. But, if I'm completely honest, there are times when other things take priority. There are times when my love for Christ is still there, but things like my love for socializing or relaxing take on a higher priority.

It was either John Piper or CJ Mahaney that made the statement that God shouldn't be "riding in the trunk of your car, waiting for you to need Him like you need a spare tire.. He should be riding with you, IN THE CAR, the whole time." I'd even go as far as to say that He should be driving, not just riding shotgun (Carrie Underwood's "Jesus Take the Wheel" comes to mind..).

He shouldn't ever be "just there".. He should be THERE. My response should come as a default reaction - not because I respond that way out of habit, or obligation, but because by default, it's true.

We always joke at church that "Jesus" is the answer to EVERYTHING (and, as discussed today, whenever you're asked "where in the Bible does it say.. *fill in the blank*", if you answer with "Romans", you're probably right). 

Jesus needs to be my answer to that question. Not because it's expected, not because it's what we want to hear.. But because it's true.

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For the very first time ever..

I defriended somebody on Facebook.

People say things all the time that drive me crazy.

They post about how often they drink.

They post about how mad they are at someone and give information that we don't need.

They constantly post about how much they love the boyfriend they've been with for a week.

They cuss more than they use normal, civilized vocabulary.

When people drive me crazy, I use the lovely little "hide" button.

But this time, I just decided to delete the person. This isn't the first time that they've posted something that bothered me. And honestly, if we were "real" friends, and not just friends online because we once knew each other.. Then I probably would've stuck to hiding (or at least explained it to the person before deleting).

But I haven't talked to this person in.. Gosh.. 4 years? I don't think it's going to cause any problems. There should be no awkward fall out because of it. Unless this person secretly stalks my Facebook and realized that they no longer have access to view me..

This deletion is not because of their lack of faith in God.

It is not because of their sexuality.

It is not because of their partying habits.

I have a problem when you call my Savior what you called Him.

And the things posted below.

And I even read the article.

And it made my blood boil.

Quoting Luke 14:26 (If anyone comes to me and does not hate his own father and mother and wife and children and brothers and sisters, yes, and even his own life, he cannot be my disciple) as an example of Jesus telling His disciples to join in a gay lifestyle?

And of course, an article like this alludes to the David and Jonathan "relationship".

And even to Paul "being gay".

This is not me bashing homosexuals or passing judgement.

This is me having a problem with lies of Jesus being shared.

And lies about the Bible.

Context, personality, and an understanding of the culture in which the Bible was originally written is important to understand when trying to find inaccuracies in the Bible. 

Or trying to change Truth.

Or trying to make the Bible fit your choices, instead of changing your life to being a believer.

The Bible doesn't change. You can, though.

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